Awestruck by Iguazu
The Devil's Roaring Throat
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| View of the Devil's Throat, with an eagle soaring above it |
Our trip from Buenos Aires was less than easy. We were flying from the domestic airport this time, instead of the international airport that we had arrived in. On the map and when we looked up the public transport this seemed like a relatively easy journey as the airport was near Palermo in the north of the city, as opposed to outside the city. However upon crossing the city we found out that the internet and the map had it a little wrong and we were not only running late, but 1.5km away from the airport, on the wrong side of the airstrip. Thankfully we managed to catch a bus around the airfield and ran through the terminal to make our flight (although, as irony would have it, our flight was delayed, so we had plenty of time).
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| The top of the Garganta del Diablo |
Iguazu falls are located on the border of Brazil and Argentina. In a futile bid to make our transport easier we stayed on the Brazilian side in a town called Foz do Iguacu and made our journey back to the Argentinian side to see the falls on our first day here. What we didn't realise was how lax the border controls for Brazil were, the bus didn't even stop at their border and just continued onwards. So our second day was spent travelling back to the Argentinian side (bringing our total number of Argentina stamps to 10) and then ensuring that our passports were given a Brazilian entry stamp so we wouldn't run into problems further down the road. This meant we didn't see the Brazilian side of the falls, which was a shame, but ultimately it's the same falls both sides, just different views of them.
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| Several of the many waterfalls |
But that's a different matter entirely, because that's just something to bear in mind if you ever visit (ensure that the bus stops for you to get a stamp, although it's really only a problem if you are flying further into Brazil).
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| Up close with the Devil's Throat |
Iguazu is a very easy place to visit, and definitely worthwhile. We stayed at an Airbnb in Foz do Iguacu (Brazil) and travel over the border into Puerto Iguazu (Argentina) then we changed busses and were soon on our way towards the Argentinian Parque de Iguazu. Unfortunately the rain was not in our favour, but nevertheless a good day was had. We started off by taking the free transit train towards the Garganta del Diablo, the Devil's Throat. The Devil's Throat is particularly impressive as it is a massive horseshoe shaped waterfall which plummets into the depths of the abyss below. Thousands of liters of water are hurled into the depths causing a misty white effect which obscures the bottom of the abyss. It did concern us that we had somewhat become Devil's anatomy tourists, as we had previously gone for a concert in the Devil's Arse in Derbyshire.
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| The oddly still waters leading up to the falls There is a crane on the rocks as well |
Further beyond this is the Iguazu river valley which is filled with hundreds more waterfalls of varying sizes (around 275 different waterfalls, depending on the water levels). After marveling at the sights on the pinacle of the Devil's Throat we headed back along the gangway, with the oddly still waters, to the train which took us back towards the main section of the park, and hundreds of food thieving coatis.
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| A food stealing coati |
When we had arrived back, we ate some empanadas, saw some monkeys and coatis and planned our next few hours. We decided that we would take the lower route where you can look across the valley and see more of the waterfalls. It would have been very easy to spend another few hours in the park, looking at the birds, thieving animals and amazing scenery, but it was raining so we decided to simply do the one other park.
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| A view down one of the falls |
Our path took us along the side of the valley and gave amazing views of all the waterfalls, and even a boat from the Brazilian side that plunged people into the waterfalls, soaking them. It was really something to walk among the trees, hearing colourful birds singing and the dull roar of the water crashing down. After completing this walk we decided that we would head back to our home in Foz Do Iguacu (Brazil), and walked back towards the small train station (think zoo buggy train rather than the Hogwarts Express). The train was going to be a while and we had plenty of time, so walked the 500m back to the exit instead, which was definitely worth is as we saw two toucans. Olivia raised the important question of how do they keep their heads up given that their beaks are about as long as their body.
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| Iguazu |
From here we headed back into Puerto Iguazu (Argentina) and then onwards over the Argentine border and onwards towards Brazil (again not stopping at the border). As said above we had planned on going to the Brazilian part of the falls, but unfortunately we needed to receive our entry stamp at the border, so we headed back to Argentina and then back in, stopping at the border to get our stamp and visitor card. We then fly from the Brazilian airport and go to Rio.
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| Even more waterfalls |
I was initially worried about getting around and sorting things out in the two towns (there's also a part of Paraguay that borders on the east of this valley, but we didn't go there). But it was all mostly easy (apart from the border issue), I would definitely say that the Iguazu falls are worth a visit, our accommodation was fantastic. It included breakfast which is always nice, or rather literally the only thing Olivia wants in accommodation. We have also discovered that if you mix Banana Jam (not as odd as it sounds) and Dulce de Leche, it tastes exactly like a banoffe pie! The waterfalls are amazing and the transport is easy, it's best to carry a little of both Brazilian money and Argentine money as sometimes the costs work better in one way than another, but they're generally accepted on both sides. We had a great time here, despite the cold and rain, and would happily come back and do it all again.
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| View down the valley from the Garganta del Diablo |
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Have a look at our Instagram to see what we're up to in Rio de Janeiro.
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